


Lumos

by thegirlwiththemouseyhair



Category: Downton Abbey, Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Hogwarts, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-26
Updated: 2014-06-26
Packaged: 2018-02-06 06:43:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,445
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1848271
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thegirlwiththemouseyhair/pseuds/thegirlwiththemouseyhair
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Not so much a crossover as a Hogwarts AU. Thomas Barrow is the Slytherin prefect - but is rather too distracted by various male schoolmates of his.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lumos

Thomas would have thought he’d get to go to bed with someone sometimes, what with living in a boys’ dormitory and all, but he had no such luck. Apparently Hogwarts wasn’t like what he’d heard about Muggle public schools.

Of course, Thomas could never have gone to Muggle public school. He was lucky Muggle money was worth so much more than Wizard money, and had enjoyed living like a young lord these last four years, ever since he got the letter. His dad had been so proud. Thomas had liked that, and still liked to think of the smile on his dad’s face when he opened the charmed watch Thomas bought him in Diagon Alley and when Thomas was made Prefect at the start of this year, just weeks ago.

Thomas annoyed some of the other Slytherins by doing as well as he did. He never lied about his Muggle watchmaker father back in Manchester, though he did lose his share of House points for hexing classmates. But you had to fight back, didn’t you? Eventually he’d learned to be more subtle about taking his revenge, to keep out of the teachers’ sight.

But sometimes it got hard, having few friends - and absolutely no one who might return those awful adult passions that seemed to burn his young body up, and that made it almost impossible to work.

He was rather taken with a fourth year boy, Jimmy Kent. Somehow Thomas hadn’t noticed him much before the start of his fourth year and Thomas’s fifth. But he seemed to have grown into a young man over the summer, despite being rather small for his age. Thomas wished they were in the same year and the same dormitory. Sometimes he looked at Jimmy and imagined doing things that made him go bright red, and that would certainly scare the younger boy off.

Jimmy wasn’t the only boy to stir those feelings, either. Thomas had spent his third and fourth year pining for Philip Crowborough, an older boy who’d seemed to be always on the verge of returning Thomas’s interest. But he never did. They’d parted on bad terms at the end of last year, when Philip finished school.

There was also Edward Courtenay, a quiet fifth year who’d been made Prefect at the same time as Thomas. Edward was kind, dutiful and so chivalrous - so typical a Gryffindor - that Thomas would have mocked him mercilessly if he hadn’t been so lovely to look at.

The two of them - Jimmy and Edward - gave Thomas a rather strange evening, one night in October. Thomas was heading back from the library when he noticed Jimmy Kent and a Hufflepuff student he was friendly with, somebody Nugent, traipsing down one of the stairways from the teachers’ offices. Something in their laughter sounded off. Thomas supposed he had to investigate, though he was a little reluctant. He didn’t want to make trouble for Jimmy.

“What are you two doing?” he asked, stopping the two boys.

Nugent’s cheeks went as red as his hair, and the sly grin disappeared from Jimmy’s face. It didn’t matter; he was just as attractive when he frowned. Thomas hoped his knees wouldn’t buckle.

“Jimmy overheard the password to Professor Hughes’s office,” Nugent said, glaring at Jimmy. “Least he thought he did. So he suggested we sneak in - but I promise it didn’t work.”

Clearly there was no honour among thieves. But it was a good try. Thomas bit his lip to keep from laughing.

“Sneaking into a teacher’s office?” he repeated.

Jimmy fidgeted, then added in a shaky voice, “I only wanted a quick look around. We both did - ”

“That’ll be five points from Hufflepuff,” Thomas said. “I don’t know you very much, Nugent, but -”

Nugent turned even redder. Thomas wouldn’t have thought it possible.

“My name’s Alfred -” Nugent began.

“And that’ll be another five points for not letting me speak,” Thomas cut him off.

Alfred gaped. Thomas shrugged, then turned to Jimmy, who was staring down at his feet. God damn it, the look on his face made Thomas’s insides flutter.

“I know you better, Jimmy,” he began, “and I’m surprised at you. You should be grateful I’m letting you off easy - ”

He stopped short. He could hear quick footsteps echoing on the stone floor behind him, and saw the light from another student’s wand brightening the dark space. Thomas tore his eyes away from Jimmy and saw Edward Courtenay walking towards them. He must have overheard some of their conversation.

_Damn_ , Thomas thought, realizing how bad he must sound.

“And that’s why it’ll be ten points from Slytherin, too,” Edward said, stopping to stand behind Thomas. “And you’re lucky we caught you, not Professor Hughes herself. Right, Thomas?”

Thomas worried at his lower lip. _Damn. Fuck. Bugger..._ This was awkward. Trust one boy he fancied to get another in trouble, with him standing in the middle of it all.

“Exactly,” Thomas said. He cleared his throat. “Don’t do anything stupid, Jimmy. I expect more from you - you won’t get anywhere by being rash or rude like that. Now, go back to your dormitories.”

They did. Thomas turned to Edward, grimacing, as soon as Jimmy and Alfred had fled down the hall. Thomas didn’t want to start a row with someone he was inclined to like - even if Edward had been rather insufferable with him.

“The hell was that for?” Thomas asked.

Edward furrowed his brow and took a step backward.

“I thought you were - blatantly favouring your own House,” he said. “Was I wrong?”

“As a matter of fact you were,” Thomas snapped. It was true. He wasn’t favouring his own House. There were plenty of Slytherin students he couldn’t stand and for whom he would not feel one ounce of sympathy. But he might favour Jimmy because he liked Jimmy, just as he would never allow someone he liked less than Edward - or who was less handsome - to upstage him like that.

“Oh,” Edward said. “I’m sorry. I’ve just tried to be conscious of - those sorts of biases, like the teachers are always telling us.”

Thomas shot him as much of a glare as he could muster. Edward, however, was probably sincere. His younger brother was in Slytherin, second year (apparently the whole Courtenay family had been, except for Edward), and had been whinging the week before because Edward had taken points from him. Thomas wasn’t sorry. Jack Courtenay was something of a brat, as far as Thomas was concerned. He certainly lacked his older brother’s interest.

Edward looked down. His eyes were so bloody beautiful.

“Well, I won’t interfere next time,” he said. “Again, I’m sorry.”

Thomas shrugged. “It’s all right.”

He meant it, too.

“What were you doing here anyway?” Thomas asked. It was too late to do much of anything, but too early for bed. Talking to Edward seemed like a sweet way to pass the time, though his mouth was dry. He couldn’t think of much to say, either: he was too busy staring at the other boy’s thin, handsome face.

Edward blushed. It suited him, but made Thomas worry that he’d stared too openly and made him uncomfortable. Thomas’s heart began to pound.

“I was finishing my star chart in the Astronomy Tower,” Edward replied, “and, well, I had to confiscate something from a third year and wanted to see if he might have stolen it from the Library…”

“You had to go after hours for that?” Thomas asked.

“It’s a bit - sensitive,” Edward said, flushing all the way up to the roots of his curls. God, it suited him so well Thomas could just forget Jimmy Kent, for now. “I wouldn’t want to go when anyone was around.”

Thomas raised an eyebrow. Edward looked so distressed, so shy all of a sudden, as if he wanted to turn tail and run away.

“I take it you think they nicked - whatever it is from the Restricted Section,” Thomas commented, grinning.

Edward squirmed. Anyone passing by might have thought _him_ the younger student who’d gotten into trouble. “I expect so…”

“Well, I can help you check, if you like,” Thomas said, in a show of rare but self-interested friendliness. Edward was lovely, after all. And Thomas thought he might know what sort of parchment the other boy had confiscated, if it made him blush like that.

“There’s no need,” Edward said, very quickly. “But thanks.”

He gave Thomas a little nod, before hurrying toward the Library.

Thomas stood still for a minute. He leaned against the wall, biting at one fingernail and watching Edward go. Then he started following the other boy. He had nothing to lose by persisting.


End file.
